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Posted by Elizabeth Henning
Elizabeth Henning
4,286 Points

What are good tracks for UX/UI through Code Oregon?

I am interested in a career in UX. I have some coding background, but coding bores me senseless. I've done the UX Basics course.

Since Treehouse doesn't have a UX track, I'm wondering what track would give me the best skills and experience to make me an attractive candidate for UX work. I'm not afraid of a technical track, I just don't want to apply for a position as, say, a PHP developer because I would hate it.

Thanks!

4 Answers

Jon Benson
Jon Benson
12,168 Points

Elizabeth,

I'm in the program too! I didn't know anything when I joined, so chose the Front End Web Development track. As I understand, the CodeOregon project was started to specifically train people who could write the boring code, because there was such a shortage now, and projected shortage in the future, of trained coders. I assumed that's why the courses are language heavy, and also emphasize semantics.

That being said, Javascript and it's libraries seem to be the thing that would allow for someone on the front-end to create a powerful interface. I admit that I am going to try to take a lot of this to try and stand out. And since I'm new and not quite bored or burned out, I think I want to learn at least Ruby to have some other language, or a whole different coding experience.

All the best to you!

Jon

Elizabeth Henning
Elizabeth Henning
4,286 Points

Javascript is a good suggestion. Does anyone know whether this actually helps employability for UX?

Amber Cookman
Amber Cookman
12,662 Points
Amber Cookman
Amber Cookman
12,662 Points

While I'm not a hiring manager or anything close to, and User Experience is still a very open-ended field, in terms of defining what type of work can be involved, I would venture to guess that the Web Design track here on Treehouse is going to be most relevant to pursuing a career in UX. The other tracks are more focused on programming, and much more coding intensive.

The HTML and CSS covered in the Web Design track can be helpful for creating mock-ups of layouts and design concepts when working with a team. There are also some classes in the track on design and aesthetic foundations, as well as courses on the basics of using Photoshop and Illustrator.

I still haven't exactly narrowed down where my journey into web development is going to take me, but UX is very high on my list of interests because it also incorporates elements of psychology, which I love. All-in-all I've found the Web Design track here to be most applicable, but I'm also supplementing with courses I find on Coursera and EdX about human-computer interaction, and other relevant topics. There was also a class just released recently on Treehouse called Researching User Needs, which I haven't had a chance to look into much, but seems like it would be a great course to supplement with for those of us interested in UX.

Elizabeth Henning
Elizabeth Henning
4,286 Points

Thanks for your help, Amber!

The Web Design track does indeed seem like a good basic choice. I'm also wondering if there's a more technical track that might make me stand out more as an applicant. I'm guessing that aspiring UX designers who know HTML and CSS are a dime a dozen.

Jonathan Handel
Jonathan Handel
4,877 Points
Jonathan Handel
Jonathan Handel
4,877 Points

If you go into the Library and search for Design courses, there are stand-alone courses in Design that might fit the bill. Most of them are in the Web Design track, but there are several that aren't.

I'm kind of in the same boat, I'm more interested in design than development. I've nearly completed as many of the design courses as are available.

Lonnie Wibberding
Lonnie Wibberding
18,318 Points
Lonnie Wibberding
Lonnie Wibberding
18,318 Points

I agree with the JavaScript comment. JavaScript will help you do things in the browser that add to UX. I don't think you can really be a great UX professional without it.